Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Court punishes rape victim

Wednesday, November 21st, 2007

If this doesn’t get your blood boiling, I don’t know what will.

***

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2007

16:05

 

MECCA

TIME,

13:05 GMT

Saudi court punishes
rape victim

A Saudi
Arabian court has doubled a corporal punishment sentence imposed on a rape
victim after she spoke out about her case.

But the
decision to give a woman who was gang raped a six months jail term and 200
lashes received only mild criticism from the

US

on Monday.

 

 

 

 


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An
official at the general court in Qatif, in

Saudi Arabia

’s eastern province, said judges
had increased the sentence because of the woman’s "attempt to aggravate and
influence the judiciary through the media".

The
woman’s name has not been released.

 

 

 

 


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The case
has drawn criticism internationally, with

Canada

saying on Monday it would complain
to the Saudi authorities about the sentence.

Canadian
reaction

Josee Verner

,

Canada

’s minister responsible for the
status of women, called the Saudi ruling "barbaric" and said it would
only further violate the 19-year-old victim.

Verner
said

Canada

would formally express its
condemnation to "the appropriate Saudi authorities".

But the

US

, which wants

Saudi Arabia

to attend its

Middle East

conference in

Annapolis

next week, did not condemn the
ruling.

Sean
McCormack, a spokesman for the

US

state department, said:
"This is a part of a judicial procedure overseas in the court of a
sovereign country," when asked to comment on the case.

"That
said, most would find this relatively astonishing that something like this
happens."

Asked
whether the Saudi authorities should reconsider the sentence against the woman,
McCormack said he could not "get involved in specific court cases in

Saudi Arabia

dealing with its own
citizens".

‘Illegal
mingling’

In
October 2006, the woman was sentenced to 90 lashes for what the court called
"illegal mingling".

According
to Human Rights Watch, the woman said she had met a male friend who had
promised to return a photograph of her.

After she
met him in his car, the pair were attacked by a gang of seven men who allegedly
raped them both several times.

The man was also sentenced to 90 lashes. Of the gang prosecuted in the case,
four were convicted of kidnapping and sentenced to between one and five years
in prison and between 80 and 1,000 lashes, Human Rights Watch said.

Abdul
Rahman al-Lahem, the woman’s lawyer and a human rights campaigner, criticised
the court’s decision publically and has subsequently had his licence to
practise law suspended.

He is
also facing a hearing by a justice ministry disciplinary committee in December
for appearing regularly on television and talking about the case.

Impunity

Farida
Deif, researcher in the women’s rights division of Human Rights Watch, said:
"A courageous young woman faces lashing and prison for speaking out about
her efforts to find justice.

"This
verdict not only sends victims of sexual violence the message that they should
not press charges, but in effect offers protection and impunity to the
perpetrators."

The New
York-based rights group has called on King Abdullah, the Saudi monarch,
to cancel the ruling against the woman, drop all charges and order the
court to end its harassment of her lawyer.

 

 

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

Oct 15 07 entry

Tuesday, October 16th, 2007

October
14, 07

Arrived
in Bangkok at pass 12 in the
morning. Was euphoric when I saw the money exchange counter open. I thought I
would be waiting til daylight before I could go to Chulalongkorn as I didn’t
have a single baht with me and I was told that exchanges did not operate round
the clock.

Had
my first encounter with Thai’s bad breed a few minutes after setting foot in
the airport. Had to crawl through layers of people belligerently offering their
transportation services just before the airport’s exit. Prices ranged from 500
to 1500 baht—definitely way more than the ceiling price stated in the
information kit sent to me by the course organizers which was 400 baht. There
was one guy who agreed to take me for that price but I politely declined.
Suffice it to say that the guy didn’t smell right, literally and figuratively.

Got
one of the metered taxi cabs lining up in front of the airport. Felt safe and
comfortable when I was pointed to the guy who would drive me to my destination:
he was an old guy with an innocuous smile. He didn’t smell at all too.

The
trip was long, and was made longer because my driver went in circles looking
for the Vidhayanives Guest House. I showed him the map I brought with me which
had instructions on how to get to the place in Thai but to no avail. It was
already pass two when I finally got to the guest house. 

Vidhayanives
was modest but pretty neat for a university residence hall. We were booked in
single rooms and I thought, perfect. I have my own airconditioner, TV, sink,
refrigerator and bathroom. Perfect. The room was kind of spacious
too—even bigger than the standard double-bed Kabayan hotel rooms. Perfect.
I can really get use to this kind of living.

I
took a quick shower and hurriedly dozed off. Never mind if I had not eaten
dinner the day before and my stomach was cringing with hunger: I was harassed, dead
beat and sleepy.
 

***

Woke
up at around 8:30 am. I wanted to get
accustomed to my immediate surroundings so I got up quickly and set out for a
walk. Little did I know that this day is when I go on a shopping spree.

Sunday
is a national holiday for the Thais so many offices were closed. I asked
different people if there was anything I could do, any place I could go to even
if it was on a Sunday. All of them just pointed me to the closest mall: the
MBK. But it opens at 10 am

I was told
and I was absolutely famished (remember, I had not put anything in my stomach
for the last 17 hours). So I went around in search of a small eatery or
restaurant to grab a bite. Saw one at the “Sports Center” (I supposed it was a
sports center since it looked like a dome and at its vicinity where various
sports shops, including a food bar with chairs shaped like soccer balls) and
had a quick fix of fried rice with chicken. For 25 baht, it was well worth it.
I’m pretty sure I would be coming back there in the next days.

I
then went to MBK. A guy told me it was still close and asked me if I was
interested to go to Thai Center first to check out the jewelries and souvenirs there for sale. He said it was
owned by the Thai government and was selling items cheap. The guy seemed like a
nice fellow to me and I had nowhere else to go so I obliged. For a moment there
I thought I had finally met a nice Thai; but then the guy directed me to one of
the taxi cabs waiting at the corner and told me the driver would take me to
Thai center and back all for 30 baht. He said that was too good a deal as the
whole trip would normally cost 200 baht. Of course any sane person would sense something
fishy but 30 baht is almost just the flag down price for taxi cabs in the Philippines
and so I went along with the whole sham.

Thus
far, my impression of Thais hasn’t been good at all. For one, they have not
been very hospitable. Filipinos are way way more welcoming and friendly. I
would even say Singaporeans are more hospitable than Thais—even if I had a fair
share of unpleasant encounters with not a few Singaporeans in my brief stay
there some months ago. But heck, who am I to judge? I have only been here less
than a day; maybe I just haven’t met the nice ones yet.

On
the way to the Thai center, the driver showed me a card: it says that for every
purchase made in the shop, the card owner gets five liters of gasoline for
free. Now it made sense to me why he wanted to take me to the Thai center even
for a minimal fee. We got to the Thai center in a flash as it was just a few
blocks away (proving that what the previous guy told me was indeed a sham—200
baht my butt).

Nothing
special in the center, as far as my bias is concerned. The people though were a
lot friendlier. I even broke one of the items on display but the attendant at
the counter didn’t charge me for it (that was a 100 baht saved, hallelujah).

A
small jewelry workshop heralds the shop itself. I caught some of the men
working there and they were all busy doing their thing. In the shop that
follows, a huge collection of elegant and expensive jewelries—from rings, to earrings,
to pendants etc.—were put on show for everybody else’s amusement (and my boredom:
not really into jewelries; I’d go with beads and simple indigenous materials
anytime).

I
then proceeded to the souvenir shop. Nothing really caught my eye but I bought
some items there to give away to friends. Bought me a bag too and a neat-looking
notebook with two guys doing muay thai at the cover. Nice.

After
some small shopping there (spent a thousand baht there), we made a quick stop
to a dress shop called Brioni. Nothing there to see and I was completely bored
to death. I just did the cab driver a favor as he told me to stay there for
five minutes—even if I didn’t buy anything—so he can get a coupon entitling him
to free 5 liters of gasoline (takteng garapal talaga). He then took me
back to MBK. Good thing I had exactly 30 baht with me as he didn’t have any
change (raw!) when I gave him a higher bill.

MBK
was jam-packed when I got there. Lots of shops inside, mostly selling clothes,
accessories and food. It actually looks like our own Greenhills Shopping Center
as it has shops selling cheap jewelries, pirated softwares, films and music
(minus the dibidi guys). It has its own food court where traditional
Thai dishes were offered. Got myself a simple meal there for lunch: rice and
chicken with slices of cucumber. I guess cucumber is a standard side dish in a
Thai meal as my breakfast also had cucumber all over it. I also went to the
supermarket to buy myself some supplies.

As
I’m an absolute film buff, I checked out the video stores in search of good
Thai films. To my surprise and disappointment, there were very few Thai movies
for sale in all the stores I visited—most were Hollywood and Asian films, in particular, Korean and Japanese movies. I didn’t even see
Monrak Transistor and Jandara—two films known in the international scene; both
were also shown in Cinemanila. I did find a film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul:
Mysterious Object at Noon but the
copy was a US
release. It seems that while a number of Thai films have made it big in the art
film arena, they aren’t exactly appreciated in their own country of origin. The
ones I saw at the stores were mostly mainstream titles and new releases.
Nevertheless, I ended up buying eight titles—what can I say, a film buff is a
film buff. :)

Got
back to Vidhayanives at around 3pm and came across with two fellows from Kenya who will be taking the course with me for the next three weeks. We made small
talk before we all went up to our rooms.

8:30 pm

 

Community work doesnt make Filipinos happy daw…

Wednesday, October 10th, 2007

Manila Times

Thursday, October 11,
2007

 

EDITORIAL

Family, health and religion

FAMILY, health and religion provide Filipinos
their greatest source of happiness, according to a study done by the National
Statistical Coordination Board. 

The nonrandom poll of 167
respondents was done during the recent National Convention of Statistics. Guess
what the participants were working on—a proposed National Happiness Index for
Filipinos. 

Filipinos get great joy from
family, which got a score of 9.45 out of 10. The family provides a dependable
safety net. When one loses a job, he could expect the clan to take care of him.
Extended families—two or three families living under one roof—mean a bigger
safety net, although it also means that more mouths are digging into the
collective pie. 

Family in the Philippines includes the godparents (considered a child’s “second
parents”) and a large collection of titos and titas we hardly know but who
drift in and out of our lives. Filipino families tend to stay together. A son
or daughter planning to get married is usually pressured by the parents to stay
or to build a cottage on the family lot if it is big enough. 

It goes without saying that
health is wealth. What are your millions for if arthritis has knocked out your
knees? It is an article of faith among Filipinos that “bawal ang magkasakit.
(it’s a crime to get sick).” Filipinos are terribly scared of hospital costs
and the steep medicine prices and are waiting for the day when President Arroyo
signs the Affordable Medicine Bill.

The Catholic Bishops
Conference of the Philippines
and the ministers and pastors should be pleased by
the confession that religion gives Filipinos great joy and comfort. The parish
priests have one more request of the churchgoers, that they increase their
weekly tithe and give more paper bills instead of the usual coins.

Surprising is the finding that
the respondents gave sports and sex very low scores. Filipinos love sports or
they would not build makeshift basketball goals on every sidestreet. If sex is
not popular, why the surge in teen sex, unwanted pregnancies, adultery and
sexually explicit movies?

The least important sources of
happiness are community work, cultural activity and politics. This shows how
isolated Filipinos are from their neighbors. It explains why they are not above
throwing their trash in somebody else’s lot. For the most part, there is little
exercise of citizenship. In many towns and cities, civic pride is wanting.
 

Culture for most is TV, movies
and the shopping mall. We are worlds apart from Cuba
where practically every citizen is a poet or from Japan where classical music competes with rock. Music and
plays are available on weekends at the Rizal Park
and Paco Park but the audience is sparse. Creative leisure is
unheard of, which explains why weekends, the time for productive diversions,
are unappreciated and taken for granted.

Filipinos seldom do volunteer
work partly because they are caught up in the rat race and partly because they
expect the government to do everything for them. Politics, Philippine-style,
gives the least joy because it is harmful to family values, mental health and
faith in a merciful God.

Radiohead I like…

Wednesday, October 10th, 2007

I really just had to post this…

***

Radiohead album bets on fast release, open pricing

       

First posted 20:47:14 (Mla time) October 06, 2007
       
 

   Michael   Erman    

Reuters

       

       

NEW
YORK–The release of popular rock group Radiohead’s new album next week
is the latest wake-up call for a music industry still struggling to
deal with the advent of digital music, experts say.

       

Normally
a Radiohead release generates huge buzz as fans and critics alike wait
to hear the latest musical direction of a band that has produced such
varied offerings as the radio hit "High and Dry" to the experimental
musings of "Kid A."

       

But the English band’s seventh
studio album "In Rainbows" is being closely watched for business
reasons; the album is being released digitally on Wednesday by the band
itself, just 10 days after the completion of recording and mixing.

       

And the price? Fans can pay what they want. The price listed at radiohead.com says simply: "IT’S UP TO YOU."

       

"This
has been a long-brewing issue with artists," said Ted Cohen of music
consulting firm TAG Strategic. "In a digital world where you can create
something relatively quickly and get it out there immediately, why
wait? Is there any overwhelming need to sit on something for three or
four months?"

       

Typically a band of Radiohead’s stature
would be signed to a major recording label, which would wait several
months before releasing the music to allow time for buzz to develop and
plan a tour and marketing campaign.

       

Tony Bongiovi, a
record producer who has been in the music business since the 1960s,
said the fast turnarounds could hurt a music business that he believes
is losing money as it becomes more singles-driven, rather than
album-driven, in the age of iTunes and Internet file-sharing.

       

Some bands wouldn’t work to complete an album if they could put out a good single right away, he said.

       

According
to Bongiovi, a singles-driven market would lead to less money for
musicians and producers, and, ultimately, to fewer artists getting a
shot at the big time.

       

"When you go into a record label now, its got to be such a sure thing. Otherwise, there’s no money for you," he said.

       

Radiohead
is releasing its latest recording alone after benefiting from label
support for their first six albums, the last out in 2003. But fast
releases might not be as worthwhile for newer bands.

       

"People
know who Radiohead are — there is a pent-up demand of people waiting
for the next thing," said Gartner Vice President Mike McGuire. "Very
few bands have that kind of loyal audience following."

       

Radiohead’s
quick release in some ways is evocative of the early days of rock ‘n
roll, when it was not uncommon to record a song in the morning, press
it into a 45 in the afternoon and have it on store shelves the next day.

       

Radiohead
is not alone in taking advantage of new technology, helping artists to
stay ahead of fast-changing musical trends and reducing the risk of
illegal downloading.

       

Stars, an indie Canadian rock
band known for lush pop songs, made their album, "In Our Bedroom After
the War," available for download on July 10, four days after completion.

       

The CD only became available in stores on Sept. 25.

       

The
band said the album would have inevitably leaked during the period
usually marked for promotion, and it hoped fans would choose to support
it by paying to download it.

       

It also said they believed that the widespread release would help build word-of-mouth about the release.

       

"We
believe that the line between the media and the public is now
completely gray," Stars said in a statement. "What differentiates a
commercial radio station from someone adding a song to their Last.fm
channel? Or their MySpace page?"

       

Brooklyn-based indie
rockers Bishop Allen said they have benefited from putting out their
music speedily. They wrote and recorded a four-song EP every month in
2006, making the record available for purchase or download the last day
of each month.

       

"The idea that you could make
something from what you’re thinking at the moment, and that fans can
immediately access those thoughts, makes it more like a dialogue," said
Justin Rice, who plays guitar, piano, and sings in the band.

       

"They were hearing what we were saying without a weird lag. It’s kind of beautiful," he said.

August rocks! Cinemanila na uli!!!

Wednesday, August 8th, 2007

Posting here the schedule of the Cinemanila Film Festival.

Tara fellow cinephiles!!!

***

9TH CINEMANILA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
      

AUGUST  8 – 19, 2007
          VENUE  1: GATEWAY MALL CINEPLEX 10
          VENUE 2: BORACAY ISLAND, PHILIPPINES

      

AUGUST 8 WEDNESDAY

      

4:30PM        

      

       

CONTROL - MATINEE SCREENING | CINEMA 1
                          (With  Band Performances by: Blast Ople and                         Pupil after screening)                        

       

IRINA PALM -  MATINEE SCREENING | CINEMA 4       

      

      

8:00PM    OPENING /  ASEAN NIGHT | CINEMA  5
       
          Lifetime Achievement Awardees:
          Mr. Robert MalengreauMr. Quentin Tarantino
          & HSH  Chatrichalerm Yukol

      

9:00PM   OPENING  FILM:   KING NARESUAN | CINEMA 5

      

AUGUST 9 THURSDAY

      

CINEMA 1
    1:00PM | LOVE’S  LONE FLOWER
    3:30PM | CONTROL
    7:30PM | SOUTH  AFRICAN NIGHT: U-CARMEN eKHAYELITSHA
        10:00PM | THE EDGE OF  HEAVEN

      

CINEMA 4
        12:30PM | CRY, THE  BELOVED COUNTRY
    2:15PM | WOMAN  ON THE BEACH
    5:00PM | IRINA  PALM
    7:15PM | THE  UNSEEABLE
    9:30PM | CONTROL

      

CINEMA 6
        10:30AM | POSTMODERN  LIFE OF MY AUNT
   1:00PM – 4:00PM | FILM ARCHIVING SEMINAR
        (Speakers: Mr. Tan Bee Thiam - Asian Film Archive 
        and Mary Del  Pilar  - ABS CBN Archives)

        5:00PM |  INVISIBLES
  7:00PM | VANAJA
   9:30PM | RED  DUST

      

AUGUST 10 FRIDAY

      

          CINEMA 1
  1:00PM | YESTERDAY
  3:30PM | WOMAN  ON THE BEACH
  7:30PM | BOLLYWOOD  NIGHT: THE NAMESAKE
10:00PM | IRINA PALM

      

CINEMA 4
        12:30PM | CONTROL
    3:00PM | FAITH’S  CORNER
    5:00PM | VOLVER
    7:15PM | RESERVOIR  DOGS (1st theatrical screening in the Philippines)
    9:40PM | 2  DAYS IN PARIS

      

CINEMA 6
        10:30AM | LOVE CONQUERS  ALL
   1:00PM – 4:00PM | GRINDHOUSE DAY
        (With  Mr. Eddie Romero and Mr. Cirio Santiago)
        5:00PM | EBONY, IVORY  AND JADE
    7:00PM | REQUIEM
    9:30PM | THE  UNSEEABLE
 

      

AUGUST 11 SATURDAY

      

CINEMA 1
   10:30AM | LEAF ON A PILLOW
    1:00PM | SECRET  LIFE OF WORDS
    3:30PM | THE  HOMESONG STORIES
    6:00PM | PULP  FICTION
    9:00PM | NO  REGRET

      

CINEMA 4
        10:30AM | GOD WILLING
        12:30PM | WOMAN ON THE  BEACH
    3:00PM | 2  DAYS IN PARIS
    5:00PM | WONDER  WOMEN
    7:00PM | YOUNG  CINEMA NIGHT 1 (COMPETITION)
   

      

CINEMA 5
        1:00PM – 4:00PM | AN AFTERNOON WITH QUENTIN  TARANTINO
        9:00PM | PHILIPPINE  PREMIERE: “DEATH PROOF”         (Gala Screening)

      

CINEMA 6
        10:30AM | LOVE FOR SHARE
    1:00PM | VILLAGE  PEOPLE RADIO SHOW
          3:00PM | JUAN BAYBAYIN
    5:00PM | PLOY
    7:30PM | AUTOHYSTORIA
    9:40PM | PLEASURE  FACTORY
 

      

AUGUST 12 SUNDAY

      

CINEMA 1
  10:30AM | CHILDREN  OF GLORY
    1:20PM | MUKHSIN
    3:30PM | LOVE  AND HONOR
    6:00PM | 2  DAYS IN PARIS
    8:30PM | CINE  MANGA: THE GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH  TIME
                  (with  Cosplay.ph)

      

CINEMA 4
        10:30AM | PLOY
        12:45PM | GETTING HOME
    3:00PM | HULA  GIRLS
    5:30PM | THE  EDGE OF HEAVEN
    8:00PM | YOUNG  CINEMA NIGHT 2 (EXHIBITION)
         

      

CINEMA 6
      
    1:00PM – 4:00PM | MASTER CLASS IN SCRIPTWRITING
               (with  Dr. Clodualdo “Doy” Del Mundo. Jr. and Mr. Ralston Jover)
        5:00PM | VOICES,  TILTED SCREENS & EXTENDED SCENES OF LONELINESS:               FILIPINOS IN HIGH DEFINITION CINEMAS
    7:00PM | PAIN  THINGS
    9:00PM | BEYOND  THE CALL
 

      

AUGUST 13 MONDAY

      

          CINEMA 1
  1:00PM | GETTING  HOME
  3:30PM | LOVE  FOR SHARE
  6:00PM | PARIS JE T’AIME
  9:00PM | HULA  GIRLS

      

CINEMA 4
        12:00PM | SARAFINA
    2:30PM | LOVE’S  LONE FLOWER
    4:30PM | CHILDREN  OF GLORY
    7:00PM | GOODBYE  BAFANA
    9:50PM | NO  REGRET

      

CINEMA 6
        1:00PM – 4:00PM | MASTER CLASS IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
        (with  Mr. Nap Jamir and Scenema Concepts)
        5:00PM | JACKIE BROWN
    7:00PM | A  LA SUERTE A LA MUERTE
    9:30PM | THE  ARSONIST

      

AUGUST 14 TUESDAY

      

CINEMA 1
    1:00PM | GOD  WILLING
    3:30PM | IRINA  PALM
    6:00PM | VOLVER
    8:30PM | PERSEPOLIS

      

CINEMA 4
        12:30PM | SANKARA
    2:30PM | THE  UNSEEABLE
    5:00PM | THE  GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME
    7:10PM | NO  REGRET
    9:30PM | THE  NAMESAKE

      

CINEMA 6
          1:00PM – 4:00PM | INTERNATIONAL CO-PRODUCTION SEMINAR
     (with  Mr. Anant Singh of Videovision Entertainment and Mr. Cirio Santiago)
        5:00PM | THE MUTHERS
    7:00PM | FAITH’S  CORNER
    9:30PM | TRIBU
       

      

NOTE: SCHEDULE  OF 2ND WEEK SCREENINGS (From August 15 – 19)

      

To Be Announced Later.

      

  1.          

    Best  of Cinemanila 2007
                
    Screenings of Award Winners and Audience  Choices
                More Philippine premieres
     
                Critic After Dark
    Programme by Noel Vera

           

      

AUGUST 15 WEDNESDAY

      

CINEMA 5
        8:30PM | AWARDS  NIGHT

      

CINEMA 6
        1:00PM – 4:00PM | INDIE FILMMAKING SEMINAR (DAY  1)

      

AUGUST 16 THURSDAY

      

CINEMA 6
        1:00PM – 4:00PM | INDIE FILMMAKING SEMINAR (DAY  2)

      

AUGUST 17, 18, 19 (FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY)

      

        CINEMANILA IN  BORACAY
        4th  BORACAY CO-PRODUCTION MEETING

      

AUGUST 19 SUNDAY

      

8:30PM | CLOSING  FILM: SEA WAVE FILM PROJECT

      

SCHEDULES ARE  SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE

Revival of comics

Sunday, August 5th, 2007

Interesting… especially if they are able to get Arnold Arre on board.

***

       

       

         

       

       

         

New brand seeks to revive comics

            

            A set of weekly comics aimed at reviving the moribund
            local comics industry will come out starting August. Titled Joe
            D’Mango’s Love Notes and Charo Santos Concio’s Maalaala Mo
            Kaya, the sets will come out in 40,000 outlets nationwide and in
            specially designed stalls along major thoroughfares in Metro Manila. 
            

            

“Comics can be instrumental in
            helping increase literacy and in values formation,” explained Guia
            Yonzon, editor of the new brand Bituin Komiks. “Our product is
            ready and our distribution network is extensive and solid.” 
            

            

Bituin Komiks, which will cost no
            more than a small bottle of soft drink, was helped developed by
            Mango Comics, an imprint of the Yonzon Entertainment Syndicate.  
            

            

Yonzon was responsible for the
            revival of Darna, with its three-part Darna Golden Anniversary
            issue, and also for the development of characters and comics for the
            popular theme park Enchanted Kingdom. 
            

            

The new brand Bituin Komiks will
            also come out with a variety of other titles and is currently
            negotiating with Carlo Caparas and young comics creators such as
            Gerry Alanguilan and Arnold Arre. 
            

            

Bituin Komiks will be a major
            player in the new era of Philippine comics. “We believe in the
            medium and its potential in harnessing the artistic and literary
            talents of our people,” Yonzon continued, adding that with the
            economic resurgence, the time for the new golden age of comics is
            now.”

         

 

Saturday, July 21, 2007
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/july/21/yehey/metro/20070721met7.html

last of the legends

Monday, July 30th, 2007

Bergman

"Death and demons haunted the anguished works that made Ingmar Bergman a film-making legend."

"Bergman passed away Monday at age 89, at home on the Swedish islet of Faro…"

‘In 1988, Woody Allen said in a 70th birthday tribute to Bergman that he
was "probably the greatest film artist, all things considered, since
the invention of the motion picture camera.""

— IHT

"Yet I know that what I tell myself is self-deception and an
incessant anxiety calls out to me: What have you done that will endure?
Is there a single metre in any one of your films that will mean
something for the future, one single line, one single situation that is
completely and absolutely real?

And with the sincere person’s deep-rooted inclination to lie I must answer; I do not know, but I think so."

"I never need to concern myself about present opinion or the judgment
of the posterity. I am a name which has not been recorded anywhere and
which will disappear when I myself disappear; but a little part of me
will live on in the triumphant masterwork of the anonymous craftsmen. A
dragon, a devil, or perhaps a saint, it does not matter which."

—Bergman

Involuntary Lesson

Wednesday, July 25th, 2007

Involuntary Lesson

Illusion dissipates.                     
    This is not home.                        

    Defending predefined fate.               
    Questions not asked.                     
    Sharing isolation openly.                
    Worshipping convention, rightious dogma. 
    Hoarding finite love.                     
    Relegated as mere commodity.             
    This is not home.                        

    Freedom left the building.               
    Deep pain rages.                         
    Beyond explanation, barely tolerated.    
    The deeper pain is feeling               
    not what has been lost,                  
    but what will be lost never again.       
    Nobody will know.                        

    Confinement cost; dearest expense.       
    A tax for living here and now.            
    This is not home.                        

    Words disallowed; phalanstery crumbles.   
    A future unlike any                      
    it seemed it would become.               
    There will be no choice.                  

    Respect each entity, the greater good.   
    Endless selfless sting, this mortal coil.

    It was supposed to be safe. It wasn’t.   
    When a cry occurs in this empty universe,
    will it be heard?                        

    ne wetou nembor

   

Spam fun of all sizes

Monday, June 25th, 2007

I normally just delete all kinds of spam in my mailbox but I sure am glad I didn’t erase this one (particularly the last line). Totally made my tiring day.

People judge your dick size by your shoes size. With Penis Enlarge Patch you dont have to wear bigger shoes to make women think you have a huge dick. You can actually have it. 

Make more shadow on the beach than umbrella does.

 

 

More details on fete!

Thursday, June 21st, 2007

Definitely expect the sked to change. Wala pa kong napupuntahang fete na nasunod completely ang lineup at sked. Oh and if anybody needs a map (its really advisable to have one, medyo malalayo kasi ang stages eh… and… if you wanna go stage-hoppin, not a very good idea… kaya WORLD na! :) ), just contact me so I can send it to you. Naka pdf eh.

Fetedelamusicpart2_2